If you and your friends don’t have access to outdoor playsets or outside playground equipment then it is very probable that a neighborhood park or school is convenient for your family . Why? Because … Playing outdoors is an invaluable activity for babies, toddlers, preschoolers, grade schoolers … not to mention teens as well as adults. Babies, toddlers and preschoolers’ healthy development is essentially based upon sensory-motor skills. Besides the obvious health benefits, as kids grow up, playing outside will encourage decision processing – (executive functioning) – as well as their curiosity – which is then naturally followed with real concrete knowledge. Children need to develop …

In international interest for Nature Conservation, Denmark conducted a poll to investigate how 3 past generations of Danes experienced nature. As part of this poll, a representative sample of 1,000 parents of 5- to 12- year-old children and 1,000 adults between 55 and 70 years of age answered a series of questions about their or their children/grandchildren’s use of natural space and attitudes toward nature. In this report, Paltved-Kaznelson presents many interesting findings, highlighting the following:  In three generations, there has been significant decline in time that children spend outdoors in nature. For instance, 59% of grandparents reported visiting a natural setting every …

Alot of us are lucky enough to have fond childhood memories of the next-door-neighbor who had the nicest backyard swing set in town, with multiple forts, a spiral slide, glider swings and a rope ladder. Or maybe you (like me) grew up playing on a cheap metal swing set (that wasn’t even anchored properly) – you know the type – where the legs would tip up out of the ground when you swung too high – thrilling you, but worrying your parents. Whatever experience you remember, backyard play sets do provide hours of fun for kids, and often becomes a neighborhood refuge for playtime. I …

Exploration of Children’s Experiences: Outdoors and Nature with Associated Risks and Benefits” Since 2009, “The Outdoor Foundation” has conducted a nationwide survey to examine youth participation in outdoor recreation. In 2009, The Outdoor Foundation conducted a nationwide survey of over 41,000 individuals between the ages of 6 and 25. Respondents under the age of 13 completed the survey with a parent, while respondents over the age of the 13 completed the survey themselves. In their report, The Outdoor Foundation outlines a number of key findings, including the following: 59% of 6- to 24 year-olds participated in outdoor recreation (defined as …

Per Sarah Lindenfeld Hall regarding “Take a Child Outside Week” (September 19, 2012) “Take a Child Outside Week” is part of an international movement started by the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences. Every year between Sept. 24 to Sept. 30 this new holiday week’s goal is to raise awareness of the importance of kids getting plenty of time outdoors – and to make sure they get outside to celebrate. This annual celebration was inspired by Richard Louv’s book “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder,” which sparked a national debate about kids and nature. Read what its organizers say about getting kids outside …

Look at this License Plate Now Available to Montana Residents! “No Child Left Inside” National Wildlife Federation – September 25, 2012 Our children spend more than 50 hours a week indoors in front of electronic devices. That’s equivalent to a full-time job with 2 hours of five days’ over time! For just one day, turn off the TV and computer, unplug video games, leave your phone at home and go outside. Studies are consistently revealing that children who spend more time outside have better overall fitness, better eyesight, less stress, less depression, better grades, and a heightened awareness of the natural world. …

Per the American Society of Landscape Architects – “Asphalt to Ecosystems: Design Ideas for Schoolyard Transformation” This Book Received the Honor Award from ASLA. It’s worth a read! This is an inspiring comprehensive book about the international green schoolyard movement and a call to action for improvements to children’s school environments to enhance their learning, play, and ecology. This books celebrates 150 successful examples around the world. Compiled from the author’s decade of experience and research the book speaks to both community members as well as design professionals. It has a lot of inspiring outdoor design ideas, practical tips, along with strategies for engaging school communities as stewards …

– Cheryl Charles of the “Children & Nature Network” : “All of us share a sense of common purpose. We represent many, many others—some we know, and others we have never met. People throughout the world are increasingly connected by a resonance and passion, to create a new common sense for the good health of children today and generations to come.” — Washington Post, June 2007 : “Concerns about long-term consequences—affecting emotional well-being, physical health, learning abilities, environmental consciousness—have spawned a national movement to ‘leave no child inside.’ In recent months, it has been the focus of Capitol Hill hearings, …

Recommended reading from the thoughtful collaborations of Andrew L. Dannenberg, Howard Frumkin and Richard J. Jackson. Making Healthy Places: Designing and Building for Health, Well-being, and Sustainability This book follows the authors’ “Urban Sprawl and Public Health” to examine the present day need to create healthy places and reduce the health risks inherent in places already built. Drawing on the latest scientific evidence, with contributions from experts in a range of fields, “Making Health Places” imparts a wealth of practical information and demonstrated and promising solutions to commonly occurring problems. We recommend that parents encourage kids to get outdoors. Daily access to outside playground …

Modern research studies on child development have shown there are major benefits for healthy child development in unstructured outdoor play. Unfortunately there is a strong sense among today’s parents that it’s unsafe for children to play unsupervised. Some urban communities are trying to graft a slice of wild and unpredictable wilderness into a safe, secure playground near you. In such places, children can explore outdoor streams, rocks, wild grasses, bushes, branches and hilly mounds – even if the rugged, varied topography has to be newly constructed on top of an otherwise ordinary landscape. These new park areas allow for risk …